Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 09.djvu/615

* HARE. 559 HAKE. molar teeth, six on each side above and five below, are transversely grooved, and are formed of two vertical plates soldered tofjetlier. All the ani- mals of this family feed exclusively on vej;etable food, and ehietly on herbage, although they are also fond of grain, roots, and the bark of trees. Their fore feet have five toes, their hind feet four; the soles are hairy. Their fur is soft; the colors mostly gray or brown. The alpine and arctic species become' white in winter; and all, except one Indian species, have white upon the under surface of the tail. As this is in- variably u])turned in flight, it is regarded by naturalists as a recognition mark by which the young or companions may keep in view and follow their Hying leader. From this characteris- tic arises the name "cottontail,' popularly given to one of the smaller American hares. The black markings which liecome so conspicuous upon the ears of several species when they are lifted serve a similar purpose, and all disappear when the animal squats, and it then presents to the eye of the searcher only a neutral-tinted back. Hares tluis ofl'cr good illustrations of "protective colora- tion' and 'recognition marks' (qq.v.). The rabbit also belongs to this family, but it is so diflferent in many ways that it is described by itself. It may be said, in passing, that although the term 'rabbit' is used generally for all kinds of leporine animals in North America, where the true rabbit does not exist, it belongs exclusively to the bur- rowing Lepiis cuniculu-s of Europe; and all others of the family, including all the American species, should be called hares. About thirty species of Lepus are known, of which one is found in South America and some twenty in North America. H.RES OF THE Old World. The type of the family is the common hare (Lepus Eiiroixnis) , which is foiind all over Europe, except in Ireland, Scandinavia, and the north of Russia. Its length is from 20 to 22 inches, and its usual weight seven or eight pounds. Another familiar Old World species is the mountain or Alpine hare (Lepus tiniidus). This occurs in Ireland, all over Northern Europe and Asia, and in the Pyre- nees, Alps. Caucasus, and thence east to Japan; while the Polar hare of America is regarded by some naturalists as identical with it. It is con- siderably smaller than the common hare, and has a rounder head, with shorter ears, hind legs, and tail, and a lighter-colored coat, which, at least in the colder parts of its range, turns white in winter. In Central Asia are found several other species, some of which are confined to the higher slopes of the great mountain ranges. A remarkable species is the Indian or hispid hare (Lepus hispidus). of the foothills of the East- em Himalayas. This hare has coarse, bristly ears, which are shorter than the skull, small eyes, a tail which is dark below and above, and hind legs only a little longer than the front ones. It is not a gregarious animal, but it is said to burrow as a rabbit does, and its young, therefore, are probably born naked and blind. It is reported that its flesh is white. Sumatra has an allied species. In Africa several species of hares inhabit the more open parts of the con- tinent from the Sahara to the Cape. The habits of all these (except the hispid) are much alike. The members of this family live among rocks and bushes, or in open country among the grass and brush. Each has a 'form' in the grass or sheltered hj" a rock, and sometimes returns to this form every day for much of the year. Hares feed at night, are mainly luieturnal in tlicir movements, and do not return to their forms until sinirisc. Hecause of the greater pro- portionate length of their hind legs, they run up hill more easily than down, and they develop great speed. All the members of the genus are remarkable for their extreme timidity, yet they are often bold and courageous in defense of tlieir young, and pugnacious toward others of Iheir own race. Their angry stam])ing upon the ground with the hind feet is well known to all countrymen. With these hind feet they can deliver powerful blows, and this is their method in fighting. The hare never becomes fat, but its flesh is excellent food. Though shot and trapped, the ordinary method of hunting it, as a sport, is by coursing with greyhounds — a sport of classic antiquity. (See C'oubsixg.) It is a prolific animal, although not nearly so much so as the rabbit. The female produces from two to five at a birth, and may begin to breed at six months of age, and produce two or three broods a year. Tlie young (levercls) are born covered with hair, and with the ej'es open. When, as in the case of the hares of California, their natural enemies — beasts and birds of prey, and serpents — are greatly reduced, this multiplication goes on with little to check it, while if the food-supply is yearly added to by enlarging plantations, the increase may be so rapid that the animals become a serious menace to agriculture, and special efforts must be made to keep them down. A5ii;Rrc.r« H.^res. The Canadian Polar hare is a variety (arcticus) of the European northern hare, and turns from its brownish grizzle in summer to pure white in winter. It comes little south of the Arctic Circle, except on the east coast, where it is to be found in Labrador and Newfoundland. Other American hares turn white in winter, however. The most conspicuous of these is the 'varying' hare (Lepus Amcri- eaivus), which is distributed from tlie middle parts of the United States throughout the north- ern parts of the continent wherever forests grow. It shows a great variety of reddish and brown- ish tints, always with the tips of the ears black behind, and in winter among northern specimens only these black ear-tips relieve the snowy white of the pelage ; but southern s[)eeimens often make only a partial change of coat. On the Western plains and in California are found several species of large hares of gaunt form and immense ears, naturally called 'jack-rabbits' ('liebres' by the Mexicans). Just how many species and sub- species of these there are, naturalists are not yet agreed, but practically five may be recognized. These include the white-tailed hare and the va- rious black-tailed rabbits. ' The white-tailed or prairie hare (Lepus campestris) is found all over the plains north of Kansas and throughout the Utah Basin. It is the only jack-rabbit whose coat turns white in winter, and it may be recognized in summer by the fact that its tail is entirely white. The tails of the other jack-rabbits are more or less black on the top — a fact ea<i!v seen, as none of this group of hares turns up its tail as do the wond-hares. Among the Western black- tailed rabbits are: (1) A buflf-bellied species found in California and southwestern Oregon (Lejius Cnlifornicus) ; (2) a large, long-limbed species inhabiting southern .Arizona and Sonora, known as Allen's hare (Lrpus Alkni) : (3) a